Hand grenade 24 ("kolotushka" -- "door knocker")
(Stielhandgranaten 24)

The Grenade 24 entered service with the German army in 1916 and went through both world wars without modifications. Total weight of the grenade -- 500 grams. Total length -- 35.6 cm, body's diameter -- 6 cm, length of the wooden handle -- 27.5 cm. This weight, combined with a comfortable handle and a rational positioning of the center of mass, provided the throwing distance by a soldier of average physical capabilities of 35-40 meters. Well trained and physically strong grenade throwers were able to throw it at a target to the distance of 60-65 meters. For the use in the defensive role, a metallic or metal-ceramic jacket was fitted over the body. The weight of the explosive, produced on the basis of ammonium nitrate -- 160-180 grams. The explosive was less powerful than that in Soviet TNT grenades. The dispersion of fragments in the offensive variant of the German grenade was 10-15 meters, in defensive -- up to 30 meters. Single fragmaents could fly as far as 100 meters.

A substantial shortcoming of the grenade was the fact that, first of all, the explosive could be damaged by dampness and, secondly, was susceptible to caking. This led to rather numerous failures to explode. The second weakness of the grenade was its grating fuse, which could be damaged by dampness even more than the main explosive charge. Besides that, if the pin was not pulled out energetically enough, the grating material did not light and the grenade did not explode. The third shortcoming of the grenade was the fact that after pulling out the pin the grenade had to be thrown without fail, since explosion followed in 4.5-5 seconds (Soviet grenades could be held in hand for an unlimited amount of time after their pin was pulled out, choosing the moment and the target for the throw, and in case the decision to throw the grenade was aborted, the pin, even if it was difficult, could be inserted back in place).